I looked at his furious face. My nails dug into my palms until the skin broke, my heart feeling carved out with a dull blade.
Then he made his move. He grabbed Jade's hand and pulled her onto the stage.
"The only woman I love is Jade Winfield," he announced. "Those wild women outside—even if they crawl into my bed, they'll never enter my heart."
Agreement rippled through the crowd. They whispered that Connor and Jade were made for each other, that I was the interloper who'd forced my way between true lovers.
I should get lost. I should die. I should go to hell.
Connor gripped Jade's hand, turning to storm out.
I caught his sleeve.
"Connor," I said, low but steady. "The Delgado family shares. Do you want them, or not?"
He froze. Turned. His eyes burned with hatred.
"Samantha," Jade cut in, her voice dripping with pity. "Other than using money to threaten him, do you have any way to keep a man?"
She mocked my despicable methods. But Connor didn't know the truth: Jade Winfield was the one rotten to the bone.
He looked ready to devour me whole. Yet the threat worked. With a jaw clenched tight enough to snap, he stayed through the rest of the agonizing ceremony.
Jade, seeing him stay, looked at Connor with tear-filled eyes of betrayal. She let out a sob and fled the venue.
The moment the ceremony ended, Connor abandoned me to chase after her.
In full view of the city's elite, I became the most pathetic bride of the century.
That night, the news was everywhere.
Delgado-Winfield Marriage Scandal: Bride Ringless at Altar. Groom Injured in Car Accident Chasing True Love.
I simmered soup overnight, pouring my pathetic devotion into a thermos, and went to the hospital.
At the door, I froze.
Inside, Connor and Jade were locked in a passionate embrace. When he saw me, he didn't pull away. His hand tightened on the back of her head, deepening the kiss—punishing me with their intimacy.
I watched them entwined. A sharp pain lanced through my chest.
Taking a breath, I mustered the last shreds of my dignity and pushed the door fully open.
Jade scrambled up like a startled bird, her lips swollen and red. She smoothed her hair, glaring.
"Do you have any manners?" she snapped.
I met her gaze, expression flat.
"Jade," I said calmly. "Tonight is my wedding night with Connor."
The color drained from her face—as if I'd grabbed her by the throat.